Posts by Stark Koenig

In the time leading to the launch of She’s Shameless: Women write about growing up, rocking out, and fighting back, we have been posting excerpts from the book on our blog. To accompany these excerpts we are including some Q&As with contributors to She’s Shameless.
Shaunga Tagore is a self-proclaimed singer-songstress, warrior-poet, gangsta-feminist, extreme-ranter-queen, lover-fighter, soul-sista-diva, who dreams of a world without hierarchies and categories, and watches Buffy in her spare time.
What does feminism mean to … READ MORE

For those in Montreal who are interested in radio, public radio, feminist radio and campus radio, here is an upcoming event that could be really cool. There will be keynote speakers, workshops, and even field trips. I wish I could be there!
The Women in Radio Conference
Thursday, June 11th, 2009
ALL DAY - 9h00-18h30
Hosted by CKUT Radio, part of the annual National Campus-Community
Radio Conference happening June 7-13th.
** Voices from the Underground: Women’s voices, women’s power **
Women in … READ MORE

A couple of months ago I pledged to blog for Ada Lovelace Day, an initiative put forth by Suw Charman-Anderson, digital rights activist, journalist and blogger. The initiative seeks to challenge the notion that women are absent from science by shedding light on women who have excelled in science.
I have chosen to look at some of the achievements and theories of Governor General’s Award winner, U.N. Pearson Peace Medal Honouree, award-winning physicist and metallurgist Ursula … READ MORE

How much do I wish that the push for a coalition government had gone through last December? Harper’s back in action and his latest proposal has been to quietly usher through budget legislation that would effectively do away with pay equity for women in the public sector, making hard-won human rights into a negotiable issue for the bargaining table.
Basically, for those of us who have a hard time wading through the legalese, the proposed bill … READ MORE

Jennifer Cowan’s debut novel, due to be released in April, follows the journey of sixteen year old Sabine, aka “Bean”, aka “earthgirl”, from her status as a regular kid hanging out with her “grrlz” to her realization of a new, eco-warrior identity. Spurred to action by the wayward and messy leftovers of a Chicken McNugget meal thrown out the window of an SUV and all over her hoodie, Sabine declares immediate and all-encompassing war on … READ MORE

So Denis Villeneuve, director of the award-winning film Maelstrom, has directed a new film called Polytechnique. As suggested by the name, the movie is about the Montreal Massacre at Montreal’s Ecole Polytechnique in 1989. Scheduled to be released in Quebec on Friday (and in the rest of Canada later this year), the film is already receiving some mixed reactions.
See the trailer here:
The cast and crew have expressed a need to explore the tragedy in art, … READ MORE

Last night I received a call from York University asking me for current alumni information (they are one of my Alma Maters) and to talk about “recent happenings at York University”. I told them that after the way the university has treated their striking workers over the last three months, I have no wish to have any affiliation with York University. Here’s why:
After a long and gruelling strike that saw a near complete lack of … READ MORE

Now don’t get me wrong. I was as happy as anyone to see that jerk Bush get into a plane no longer called Air Force One and fly on home to Texas. I am ecstatic that the U.S. has a Democrat as a president again and I am even more so that finally a day has come when a person of color can hold the highest office in that country. Good for you, U.S.A.!
That said….I … READ MORE

So it’s the big day for America! Buh-bye, Bush! And good riddance, right? Now if we could only do the same with Harper. That seems to be the sentiment of a lot of Canadians, who are registering some serious Obama-Envy.
I found myself wondering after Obama’s election win in November whether the results of Canada’s election would have been different had ours come after the U.S. election instead of before. Considering the disappointingly low turnout of … READ MORE

I don’t often watch a lot of TV directed toward youth, so I miss out on much of the advertising that is directed at young people. However, in recent months I caught an advertisement released by the Canadian Centre for Diversity.
I feel a bit conflicted about bringing this up because clearly this is an organization that offers valuable resources, education and programs promoting equality, unity and confidence among diverse peoples, with special focus on empowering … READ MORE

It’s been 19 years since a man walked into Ecole Polytechnique and killed fourteen women, making a statement of hatred against women and against feminists. It’s easy to remember the name of someone who commits such an act, but not as easy always to remember the names of those who died.
It’s also easy to forget that the attack was not just some crazy individual losing control, but a man acting in a context of institutionalized … READ MORE

I know this is usually Anna’s domain, but a few weeks ago some of the bloggers and readers here were having a conversation about women-friendly hip hop and I just wanted to add another name to the list of artists worth a listen.
Based in New York and Detroit, MC Invincible drops some rhymes with some serious focus. In her work she talks about feminism, racism, social justice, homophobia, depression and more. And she puts her … READ MORE

Ralph Nader said in a Fox News radio interview that Barack Obama has a choice, to be “Uncle Sam for the people of this country, or ‘Uncle Tom’ for the giant corporations.”
While I agree that along with our embrace of Obama as a force for change, we should remain, as always, critical and watchful of our leaders, I find myself in the uncomfortable position of agreeing with the folks at Fox News that his choice … READ MORE

Anyone watching Grey’s Anatomy recently will have witnessed the budding romance between two of the female characters, Callie Torres (played by Sara Ramirez) and Erica Hahn (played by Brooke Smith). Beginning with some mild flirtation last season which culminated in a season-finale kiss that blew the lesbian fan base away (not to mention wooed back a few of those who had given up on the show after the whole Isaiah Washington F-word fiasco), the relationship … READ MORE

I have been an aficionado of crime procedurals on TV for at least a decade now, fed in recent years with a constant diet of CSI and Law & Order spinoffs, new young ensemble casts of model-icious criminal profilers, FBI missing persons investigators and cold case cops. What a smoergasbord! I’m getting full.
Thankfully, this season’s TV roster seems to have picked up on an emerging demand in the TV market for old school sci-fi/strange phenomenon … READ MORE

So now that the Canadian election has passed, I’m back to paying attention with a mixture of amusement and utter horror to the ongoing campaign trail south of the border. After the schmozzle that was the Primaries last year, the showdown between Obama and McCain seemed almost in the bag until the Republicans revealed their secret weapon in September: a 44-year-old former beauty queen and mayor and current hockey mom and governor.
The entire continent laughed. … READ MORE